Archives: Articles

Gear October 2026

Four mics that keep earning their place on every session

There are four mics on the shelf by the door that never get put away between sessions. Two…

Recording October 2026

How to Record an Acoustic Guitar in a Bedroom Without Killing the Room

I recorded an acoustic guitar in a bedroom last Tuesday. Seven feet by nine, bookshelf on one wall,…

Plugins September 2026

Tape saturation plugins that actually sound like tape: a shootout

I keep a running note in my session log: “tape plugin on the mix bus, 1.5 dB of…

Plugins September 2026

Tape Emulation Plugins That Don’t Sound Like Bad Photoshop

The first tape plugin I bought was a mistake. It made everything sound like a JPEG run through…

Recording September 2026

How to record a drum kit in a small untreated room without it sounding boxy

The first time I recorded drums in my own room, I thought the kit sounded fine. Then I…

Mixing September 2026

Drum Bus Compression: Slow Attack, Fast Release, and Stop Overthinking It

Most of what gets written about the drum bus is wrong for the room I work in. The…

Plugins August 2026

What a big plugin sale actually means for your mixes (and when to skip it)

The sale email lands on a Tuesday. Forty percent off everything, sixty hours left, a countdown clock ticking…

Technique August 2026

Stop editing every breath: why honest takes beat comped perfection

The singer stops before the second verse. She looks at me through the glass and says, “I breathed…

Plugins August 2026

Slate Digital vs Waves: Which Bundle Actually Earns Its Price for Small Studios

I’ve watched two friends build small rooms around these two bundles and arrive at completely different places. One…